InArgentina, about 10%[1] of the electricity comes from 3 operationalnuclear reactors:Embalse, aCANDU reactor, andAtucha I and II, twoPHWR German designs also known as PHWR KWU as per PRIS.
In 2001, the Atucha plant was modified to burn Slightly Enriched Uranium, making it the first PHWR reactor to burn that fuel worldwide.[citation needed] Atucha was originally planned to be a complex with various reactors.Atucha 2 (similar to Atucha 1 but more powerful) began to produce energy on June 3, 2014, and it is expected to produce 745MWh[clarification needed]. Plans for Atucha III, a third reactor in the Atucha complex, have been announced.[2]
Argentina also has various research reactors,[3] and exports nuclear technology. Nucleoeléctrica of Argentina andAtomic Energy of Canada Limited are negotiating over the contracts and project delivery model for a new 740 MWe CANDU nuclear power plant.[4]
In July 2014, Russian PresidentVladimir Putin signed a nuclear energy cooperation agreement with Argentine PresidentCristina Fernández Kirchner, during a visit to the country.[5]
In February 2015, Argentine presidentCristina Kirchner andChinese Communist Party general secretaryXi Jinping signed a cooperation agreement, and the build of aHualong One design power station has been proposed.[6][7]
In December 2015 a newuranium enrichment plant to manufacture fuel for Argentina's nuclear plants, located inPilcaniyeu, was inaugurated. The plant will use bothgaseous diffusion and more modern laser techniques.[8]
China and Argentina had agreed a contract to build a 700 MWeCANDU 6 derived reactor. Its construction was planned to start in 2018 atAtucha,[9][10] but it was indefinitely suspended byMauricio Macri's government due to financial issues.[11] The building of a 1000 MWeHualong One plant is planned to start in 2020.[10]
| Plant name | Unit No. | Type | Model | Status | Capacity (MW) | Begin building | Commercial operation | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atucha[12] | 1 | PHWR | Siemens-KWU | Operation suspended (under maintenance) | 362 | 1 Jun 1968 | 24 Jun 1974 | |
| 2 | PHWR | Siemens-KWU | Operational | 745 | 14 Jul 1981 | 27 Jun 2014 | ||
| 3 | PWR | Hualong One | Planned[13] | 1200 | ||||
| Embalse[14] | 1 | PHWR | CANDU-6 | Operational | 683 | 1 Apr 1974 | 20 Jan 1984 | (2049)[15] |
| CAREM | 1 | PWR | CAREM25 | Under construction | 25 | 8 Feb 2014 |
| Name[16] | Reactor type | Status | Capacity in kWt | Construction start date | First criticality date | Closure | Operator and owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RA-0 | Tank | Operational | 0.01 | January 1954 | 1 January 1965 | National University of Córdoba | |
| RA-1 Enrico Fermi | Tank | Operational | 40 | April 1957 | 20 January 1958 | National Atomic Energy Commission | |
| RA-2 | Critical assembly | Decommissioned | 0.03 | January 1965 | 1 July 1966 | 23 September 1983a | National Atomic Energy Commission |
| RA-3 | Pool | Operational | 10,000 | February 1963 | 17 May 1967 | National Atomic Energy Commission | |
| RA-4 | HOMOG | Operational | 0.001 | January 1971 | 1 January 1972 | National University of Rosario | |
| RA-6 | Pool | Operational | 3,000 | September 1978 | 23 September 1982 | National Atomic Energy Commission | |
| RA-8 | Critical assembly | Temporary Shutdown | 0.01 | January 1986 | 16 June 1997 | 2001 | National Atomic Energy Commission |
| RA-10 | Under construction | 30,000 | March 2016 | (late 2023) | National Atomic Energy Commission |
Provinces that have banned the construction of nuclear power plants are:[17]
